Science is a powerful instrument.

How
it is used, whether it is a blessing or a
curse to mankind, depends on mankind
and not on the instrument. A knife is
useful, but it can also kill.
- Albert Einstein
 Kinematics
A quantitative description of motion
without reference to its physical causes
 Calculate the average
velocity between p1 and p2.
The “AREA” x
v  lim t 0
We have learned that the rate of change of t
displacement is defined as the VELOCITY of
an object. Consider the graph below dx
v
dt
v (m/s) Notice that the 12 m happens to be
the AREA under the line or the
height( v = 3 m/s) times the
base( t= 4 seconds) = 12 meters
v =3 m/s

Area = 12 m

t(s)

t1= 1s t1= 5s This works really nice if the function

is linear. What if it isn't?
The “Area”
How do we determine HOW FAR something travels when the function is a
curve? Consider the velocity versus time graph below

v (m/s) The distance traveled during the time

interval between t1 and t2 equals the
shaded area under the curve. As the
v(t +t) function varies continuously,
determining this area is NOT easy as
was the example before.
v(t)

t(s)
t1 t2

So how do we find the area?

 Once again, we ZOOM in…
Consider an arbitrary time t
v (m/s)
Place a differential time
interval dt about time t
( see graph). This rectangle is
SUPER SMALL and is only visible
for the purpose of an explanation.

v(t) The idea is that the AREA under

the curve is the SUM of all the
dt areas of each individual “dt”.

t(s)
t1 t t2
2
1
With “dt” very small, area 1 fits into area 2 so that the
approximate area is simply the area of the rectangle. If
we find this area for ALL the small dt's between t1
and t2, then added them all up, we would end up with
the TOTAL AREA or TOTAL DISPLACEMENT.
 The “Integral”
The temptation is to use the conventional summation sign “" . The
problem is that you can only use the summation sign to denote
the summing of DISCRETE QUANTITIES and NOT for
something that is continuously varying. Thus, we cannot use it.

When a continuous function is summed, a different sign is used. It is

called and Integral, and the symbol looks like this:

When you are dealing with a situation where you have to

integrate realize:

• WE ARE GIVEN: the derivative already

• WE WANT: The original function x(t)

So what are we basically doing? WE ARE WORKING

BACKWARDS!!!!! OR FINDING THE ANTI -DERIVATIVE
Example
An object is moving at velocity x(t )   v dt   (2t )dt 
with respect to time according
to the equation v(t) = 2t.
a) What is the displacement
x(t )  t 2
function? Hint: What was the
These are your LIMITS!
ORIGINAL FUNCTION
BEFORE the “derivative? was
taken? t 7 t 7
b) How FAR did it x(t )   v dt   (2t ) dt  t 7 2
t 2 t
t 2 t 2
travel from t = 2s
to t = 7s? 7  2  49  4  45 m
2 2

You might have noticed that in the above example we had to find the change() over the
integral to find the area, that is why we subtract. This might sound confusing. But
integration does mean SUM. What we are doing is finding the TOTAL AREA from 0-7 and
then the TOTAL AREA from 0-2. Then we can subtract the two numbers to get JUST THE
AREA from 2-7.
In summary… dx dv
So basically derivatives are used v a
to find SLOPES and Integrals dt dt
are used to find AREAS.

When do I use limits?

x   v dt v   a dt

There are only TWO things you will be asked to do.

•DERIVE – Simply find a function, which do not require limits

•EVALUATE – Find the function and solve using a given set of limits.
Example
A particle moving in one dimension has a position function defined
as:
x(t) = 6t4-2t
a) At what point in time does the particle change its direction along the x-
axis?

The body will change its direction when it dx d (6t 4  2t )

reaches either its maximum or minimum
v  
dt dt
x position. At that point it will reverse its
direction. The velocity at the turn around
point is ZERO. Thus the velocity function
is:
Example
b) What is the time of the body when its
acceleration is 12 m/s/s?
If we can determine the time at which a = +12 m/s, we can put
that time back into our velocity function to determine the
velocity of the body at that point of motion. Knowing the velocity
(sign and all) will tell us the direction of motion.

The velocity vector is negative, the body

must be moving in the negative direction
when the acceleration is +12 m/s/s.
Activity: Think- Pair- Share
1.A particle moves along with acceleration a(t)
m/s2 along an x-axis and has velocity v0 m/s at
time t = 0. Find the displacement by the particle
during the given time interval.
a(t) = 3; v0 = −1; 0 ≤ t ≤ 2
2. The position of an object is x(t) = 1.00 + 2.00
t - 3.00 t2, where x is in meters and t is in
seconds. Calculate the instantaneous
velocity of the object at time t =3.00 s.
Seatwork:

3. A missile is accelerating at a rate of 4t

m/sec2 from a position at rest in a silo
35 m below ground level. How high
above the ground will it be after 6
seconds?
Assignment:
1. Given the velocity as a function of time:
The velocity of an object is v(t) = 1.00 - 3.00
t2, where v is in meters per second and t is in
seconds. Calculate the displacement of the
object in the time interval from t = 1.00 s to t
=2.00 s.
Assignment:
2. The position of a particle on a line is given
by s(t) = t 3 − 3 t 2 − 6 t + 5, where t is
measured in seconds and s is measured in
feet. Find

a. The velocity of the particle at the end of 2

seconds.
b. The acceleration of the particle at the end
of 2 seconds.
Activity: Think- Pair- Share
1. A car accelerates from rest at a constant rate
of 9.8 m/s2 for 3 seconds. Find the velocity, and
displacement of the car at the end of that time.

2. A person throws a stone vertical upward with

an initial speed of 12.5 m/s on the top of a cliff
which is 105 m. What is the maximum height
that the stone can reach? How long does it take
to land on the ground?
Activity: Think- Pair- Share
3. The position of an object moving along a
straight line is given by x = 3 - 2t2 + 3t3 where x
is in meters and t in seconds.
a.Derive the expressions for the velocity and
acceleration of the object as a function of time.
b.Find the position of the object at t = 0, t = 2s, t
= 4s.
c.Find the displacement or the object between t
= 2s and t = 4s; between t = 0s and t = 4s.
Activity: Think- Pair- Share
3. The position of an object moving along a
straight line is given by x = 3 - 2t2 + 3t3 where x
is in meters and t in seconds.

d) Find the average velocity between t = 2s and

t = 4s; between t = 0s and t = 4s; between t =
1s and t = 3s.